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5 days ago
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World’s First Openly Gay Imam Shot Dead in South Africa After Officiating Lesbian Wedding
Imam Muhsin Hendricks, the world’s first openly gay Muslim cleric and a prominent LGBTQIA+ activist, was shot and killed in an ambush in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape, South Africa, on Saturday, February 15, 2025.
Hendricks was traveling in his car when another car blocked his vehicle. Two masked gunmen emerged and opened fire, striking the 57-year-old imam multiple times. His driver managed to escape and later realized that Hendricks, who was seated in the back, had been fatally shot.
A police statement confirmed: “Two unidentified suspects with covered faces fired multiple shots at the vehicle. The driver fled the scene and only later noticed that Hendricks, who was in the back seat, had been shot and killed.”
The murder was captured on CCTV footage, which has since circulated on social media.
Hendricks was a vocal advocate for LGBTQIA+ rights within the Muslim community. He founded The Inner Circle in 1996, a group supporting queer Muslims, and in 2011 established Masjidul Ghurbaah, a mosque in Cape Town designed to be a safe space for LGBTQ+ Muslims.
Speaking about his mission in an earlier interview, Hendricks had said:
“I told myself that perhaps it was time we created our own space, where people could pray without being judged.”
https://thenews-chronicle.com/worlds-first-openly-gay-imam-shot-dead-in-south-africa-after-officiating-lesbian-wedding/
